Pirates
by hyperpsychomaniac
Summary: The Saint Nazaire is captured, and its captors have a traditional pirate-style fate in mind for its captain.
1. Chapter 1

The two young men looked over the subdued crew of the pirate vessel. The smirks plastered across their stubbled faces said they were more than pleased with their handiwork.

"So, you call yourself 'pirates'!" Julian, the blond haired one, said. "You take a bit of water from the Sphere when they're not looking? Knock out a few lone S22s here and there? Yeah, great work! You're ineffectual. Pathetic!" Here he stopped, and spat on the deck. "But when have you ever gotten us any water, hmm? Well, we need some, and we're taking yours. And your vessel while we're at it. How's that for pirating? You see, we're the real pirates here!"

The captain of the ship glared, anger smouldering behind his brown eyes. He was tied at the wrists and down on his knees. Julian's younger brother, Samuel, pointed an energy rifle at the man's head. But instead of looking at that threat of death, the captain had his glare firmly fixed on Julian. He snorted. "You're not pirates. You're just boys, pretending to be men!"

"We're providing for our family!" Samuel snapped and shoved the barrel of the rifle, and his face, closer to the captain's ear.

"Sam…" Julian started.

The red haired man suddenly moved, and in a blur Samuel was down on the ground, clutching his bloodied nose where it'd connected with the captain's forehead. "Son of a…!"

Julian spun on the captain, pointing his own weapon now. He suddenly feared getting too close. "Stay… stay down!" he growled, keeping his distance.

"Come on, kid," the man growled. Julian could now imagine the captain was a coiled spring of energy, just ready to attack if either of them gave him another chance. "You don't want to do this…"

"Yeah, we do…" Samuel pulled himself back to his feet. "I think you broke my nose… no, don't move!" He raised his weapon again, obviously ignoring his pain.

This time the captain froze in place.

Samuel's weapon was now pointed at the one other crew member they'd apprehended on the vessel. "You want to break my nose? How about I break his head!"

"Cortes…" the old man said, shying away from the weapon. "You can't let them get the ship. Puerto Angel needs…"

The captain snapped his head around. "_Don't_ name it!"

He was distracted for a moment, and Julian realised he briefly had an advantage again. How dare the man take that away from him in the first place? And how dare he attack his brother! Before he knew it he'd taken one determined step forward, planted his foot down, and swung the butt of his rifle up so it connected with the captain's jaw.

Unable to break his fall with his restrained hands, the man sprawled flat on his back to the deck.

"You dare fight back? After all the trouble you've caused us! How hard you've made it to keep water!" Julian stepped up and planted his foot on the man's chest. "No, don't move! Or my brother'll blast your friend's head off!"

Julian put more of his weight down, until the captain grunted under the pressure. Anger had flared somewhere deep inside of him. "Well, I'm going to make you pay. Sam! Go to our ship. Get the rope."

"The old man…"

"Take him with you!"

"But why do you need…"

"Just get it! And don't you move, or your friend is dead!"

The captain swallowed.

That's right, now _he_ was the one scared. Served him right! Julian had been scared too many times in his life, and it was wonderful to see someone who deserved it scared of him.

Samuel returned with a long length of rope. "Well?"

Julian took the offered end, but kept his foot on the captain's chest. "Keep your gun on the old man," he told his brother again. "Captain…" he leaned down, "give me your hands."

The captain thrust his tied hands upwards.

Julian glanced in his eyes; wanting to be sure he had no intention of pulling a fast one. The anger was still there, but it was much subdued. The man had no intention of putting his older friend in jeopardy. Julian smiled unkindly. "Thankyou." He untied the captain's wrists.

"Careful…" said Samuel.

"You're not going to let your friend get hurt, are you?" Julian asked. His smile had begun to stick to his face as a mad grin. His heart was pounding faster. He took the rope he held, and tied it to one of the man's wrists. "So you're just going to stay down when I finish this off, aren't you." He stepped off the man's chest, and walked to the bow of the ship. He was now completely confident the captain would not fight back. At the bow, he tossed a loop of the rope over, but kept the other end in his hand.

He swaggered back, pulled the captain to his feet and placed the loose end in this hand. The rope now encircled the ship's hull. "Tie that off for me, would you?"

The man looked at him blankly.

Rather than annoy him that only made Julian's grin grow wider. He had no idea what was about to happen! "On your other wrist. Tie it off."

"Julian, what are you doing?" Samuel asked.

"Sam! Don't you remember those pirate stories our father used to tell us?"

"Yeah…"

"There is no need for this kind of violence!" the old man suddenly burst out.

"Look! He knows what I'm doing!" Julian grinned. "Remember what pirates do to the captain's of the ships they take? It's not walking the plank!"

"This is unnecessary!" the old man tried again. "You can take the water! But in this day and age? What you're about to do is barbaric!"

"What's barbaric!" Julian demanded, still grinning. "Come on! I want somebody to say it!"

"To keelhaul a man for…"

"There!" Julian interrupted. "You see now, Sam!"

"Keel…" the captain started, but then faltered and dropped the ropes end.

Julian caught it, and slapped it back in his palm. "Tie it off!" When he didn't comply, Julian snatched it back and knotted it himself. Tightly, and roughly. He wouldn't be held up now. The captain struggled slightly as he finished off the knot, but there was no real fight in it.

"Julian…" Samuel began. "This is…"

"No!" Julian snapped. "You know how much these pirates have cost us? They can't get away with it. He deserves this!"

"I just meant that…"

"Watch the old man! You, go!" Julian shoved the captain hard, towards the side of the ship. "Keep going, or my brother shoots!" He planted both palms hard against the man's chest, and he stumbled right to the very edge. "I'm going to enjoy this…" One last push and the captain of the pirate vessel tumbled over the edge.

Julian grabbed onto the rope as it slipped over, braking its descent. Somehow, he didn't feel the pain as the rope burnt through his skin. There was a thud that reverberated through the deck as a human body hit metal. Julian could not stop himself grinning madly as he again let the rope slide through his fingers.


	2. Chapter 2

Cortes gritted his teeth and stifled a yell as his shoulder hit the side of the Saint Nazaire – hard. The pain worried him but for a moment. And then he looked down. Endless sky swam beneath him. The rope jerked again, and again Cortes dropped a few dozen feet. His stomach churned just before he slammed against the hull.

Cortes only had a vague comprehension of keelhauling. He knew just enough to know it, usually, involved water. A small part of him was thankful that, for him, water was not involved. It would be strange, unnerving and ironic if he ended up _drowning_ in Skyland. But the alternative was not much better. He also knew it involved getting torn up against a ships hull. Without water, that was what was going to kill him.

He crashed against the side of the hull again. _Why didn't they hurry up and do it properly! _he found himself thinking in annoyance. Just finish it instead of letting him dangle over endless sky! The queasy, spinning, dizzy feeling and the ache that was now not leaving him every time he smashed into the side of the hull had to be worse. It had to be worse when he was still awaiting the real pain when his own vessel would start to tear him apart.

Cortes closed his eyes, but that made it worse. He could still feel the sudden drop – only this time he didn't hit the side of the ship, but his arm was nearly wrenched from its socket. He opened one eye, and shut it fast again when he realised now all he could see was completely clear sky. He was right under the ship! And it was so unnerving he had to close his eyes again.

For crying out loud! What were they doing just letting him dangle! It wasn't like he was going to drown hanging here. There was no damn water! All movement had stopped, leaving him swinging. His heart was pounding, and he felt sick.

Seconds ticked by and still he didn't move. What the hell were they doing?

The rope suddenly jerked again. The upward motion dragged him up and he hit his back against the underside of the hull, and swore. The rope wiggled again, and Cortes bumped the underside of his ship again, before being dragged roughly up the side of the hull. That was perhaps worse than falling down the other side.

With a loud thump Cortes rolled over the railing and landed on the Saint Nazaire's deck. He swore again, and then pushed himself to his knees. He was bruised and shaking, but otherwise the ordeal had left him largely undamaged.

"Cortes, are you alright?" the Vector asked.

Cortes looked up to see the Vector kneeling next to him. He no longer had a crazed young man pointing a gun at his head.

Cortes' head reeled, but he forced himself to look around. The two young men were now on their knees, hands on their head. Wayan was pointing a gun at them from behind, and Dahlia had her bow held loosely, frowning at the two as if she was daring either of them to make a move.

"What do you think, Vector?" Cortes spat.

"Sorry, Captain," said Dahlia. "We got here as soon as we could. These two weren't much of a problem."

"Do you think…" Cortes gasped out, feeling his stomach turn, "that you could maybe have gotten here thirty seconds earlier? Maybe?"

"Alright, calm down, Cortes…" said the Vector, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"You try calming down after getting dropped off the side of the bloody ship!"

"I tried to tell you, Julian! You can't keelhaul someone with no water! And on a smooth hull!" one of the boys snarled.

"Quiet…" said Wayan, poking the boy with the tip of his rifle.

"Didn't work…" Cortes muttered. He stumbled to his feet, still visibly shaking.

"Cortes, maybe you should…" the Vector started. Cortes pushed off his offered help.

"Didn't work?" Cortes shouted. "I've just been dragged up the side of my own ship!"

"Actually, that was your crew," Julian replied. "We only threw you off the side. So quit whinging, we were only mucking around! Really! Like Sam said, there wasn't any water…"

"Oh no," Cortes snarled. "You really thought you were going to mess me up. You want to get some water? Fine! Maybe steal it from the bloody Sphere! They took it from you in the first place!"

"Oh fine, whatever!" Julian snapped back. "Yeah, I wanted to kill you. It's not like you lot are doing anyone around here any good in the first place. How about _you_ take some water from the Sphere, you're supposed to be the pirates after all!"

Cortes seethed, fists clenched.

"No, instead you nearly have a cry because we bounced you off the side of the ship!"

"You ever been keelhauled, kid? Or you just thought it'd be fun to play around with someone's life?"

"Yeah, 'cause it was sooo scary? Go on, drop us off the side of the ship if you want! If a little payback makes you feel better about it…"

"Julian!" Samuel whispered loudly. "Shut up!"

"You know…" Cortes growled. "Maybe I'll do just that."

* * *

"You are a complete idiot! Do you know that?" Samuel growled. He tugged at the ropes that bound his wrists, but the knots were tight and they did not budge.

"I'm sorry, alright? I told you these guys weren't all they're cracked up to be…"

"_You_ told _me_!" Samuel blinked. "Then why'd you decide to go attack their ship, huh? Why'd you go and drop the Captain off the side? You didn't even kill him! You just got him pissed off! And now look at us!" He threw his hands in the air, though they didn't quite make the intended gesture, as they were bound together.

The two now stood on a rocky, abandoned bloc. The ropes that bound them extended up to the now reclaimed pirate vessel. The vessel that was now slowly pulling away, pulling the ropes taut. It wasn't difficult to guess what would happen. The ship would pull away, alongside the bloc, and the two men would follow. Until the ship began to move faster, and they were no longer able to run fast enough to keep up.

"I hope you're happy! Yeah, mess with pirates! This guy might not be able to keelhaul us, but I'm sure dragging us behind his ship will satiate him. Why didn't you think of this first!"

They had started to jog. The outcome would still be the same, once the ship picked up speed, but the self preservation instinct was too strong.

"Come on!" Julian called out. "At least let my brother go! He didn't keelhaul you!"

"Wish I had. Would've done it properly…" Samuel muttered.

The pirate Captain stood at the ships stern. He leaned casually against the railing, near where the ropes disappeared up onto the deck. He no longer appeared shaken, but a fierce anger was still behind his eyes. He seemed utterly unperturbed by Julian's plea. "Perhaps you should've thought about that earlier," he said simply.

"Come on!" Julian shouted again.

They were both running faster now. Any moment, and the ship would be going to fast…

Samuel felt something strike against his toe, and then he was sliding through the dirt. Any second now, some piece of rock would rip into him…

He slid to a halt, coughing as dirt stirred up around him. Looking up shakily, he caught sight of his brother, also sprawled in the dirt a few feet ahead of him. "What…" he spluttered. He caught sight of the two ropes slipping lazily off the edge of pirate ships deck. They hadn't been tied?

Julian was already on his feet. He was shaking but still managed to toss his two fists in the air. "What… the _hell_!" he shouted after the retreating vessel.

Samuel struggled to his feet. Momentarily, he couldn't believe his luck. Then, he noticed the pirate Captain had not so much as moved, or given any order for the vessel to turn back around and take care of the two who had dared to try to take his ship from him.

It was at that point that Samuel realised: the Captain had no intention of dragging them over a bloc.

"Just be glad you didn't do that to the Sphere…" the man called after them as the vessel pulled away.

The two young men stared dumbfounded after the pirate ship. By the time they had recovered enough to think of any sort of retort, the ship was long out of earshot.

"You know…" said Samuel. "He could've killed us if he wanted to…"

"I know," Julian seethed. "And that's what's really pissing me off!"

The two brothers continued to walk along the bloc. They'd seen the pirate ship pause further ahead, and realised, they had actually bothered to drop off their ship. They'd have to walk a ways to it, but they weren't going to be left stranded either. Samuel noticed that only seemed to make his brother angrier, but decided it was better not to bring it up.

They arrived at their small ship and climbed aboard. Samuel made a quick check of some of the systems, still suspicious that the pirates might have rigged it to explode, or something. Unlikely, as they could have easily killed them already, and kept their ship. He did, however, notice that something had been tampered with.

"Er… Julian?"

"What?" Julian snapped. He was still angry, flipping switches as he started up the ship.

"Our water tanks…"

"Oh great!" Julian snarled, pounding a fist on the console. "I knew they'd do something! What, they've put holes in them? Ripped them out completely?"

"No," Samuel growled, growing frustrated with his brother. "They're half full."

Julian looked like he was about to scream something, then, the sentence registered and he just stood there, jaw hanging open. His anger had completely evaporated.

Samuel shook his head, feeling no sympathy for his brother's confusion right now. "Maybe if we'd asked nicely they'd be full."


End file.
